Southwest Florida Wildlife

Introduction

At Ave Maria University, there are abundant native species of wildlife which coexist with the student population. With many of these species, students are simply asked to respect these creatures in their natural habitat. These include alligators, feral hogs, black bears, snakes, and spiders. It is important to be aware that a few of these can pose a real threat if certain boundaries are not respected.

Table of Contents

Black Bears

Native to the region can be found throughout Florida. The black bear can be found in the forested areas of Florida, it has been threatened due to deforestation. The black bear is mainly solitary, except when in groups or during mating season. In general, most are not territorial.
Florida Blackbear Information

The American Alligator

Once, endangered, this species now thrives throughout most parts of Florida and many parts of the Southeastern United States. Alligators can be found in ANY body of fresh water. For this reason, it is important to stress that care must be taken when walking along fresh water in Florida.

A few tips that will help to maintain a safe environment:

Never feed alligators. It is illegal because it leads to an association between people and food.

Never approach an alligator. Alligators are not a threat until you and the alligator are too close.

Inform security of any alligator sightings on land

Alligators are most active between dusk and dawn. Therefore, be especially careful if you are around water at night.

Most alligators you will encounter will be bbetween 3 to 6 feet in length.

Depending on the availability of food, alligators can grow up to a foot a year until they reach approximately six feet in length. Once reaching six feet, the alligator begins to grow more in girth and will continue to grow in length very slowly, approximately two inches a year.

Feral Hogs

Feral hogs, also known as wild boar, are now numerous throughout Florida. They were introduced by Spanish settlers and are therefore not a native species. Boar pose more of a threat to landscaping (since they will till the earth with their tusks) than to people.

photo courtesy of: pennlive.com

The following suggestions are offered for a possible encounter with a boar:

Never Chase wild boar. Wild boar will run from humans unless threatened or cornered.

Leave the boar alone. If you see wild boar, you can watch from a distance. Once they notice that you are there, they'll soon be gone.

Spiders

There are many species of spiders in Florida. Most do not pose a threat to humans. Three in particular are potentially extremely dangerous. These are the black widow, the brown widow, and the brown recluse. For more information click here.